Hinge



Sept. 17, 1968 Filed Sept. 15, 1965 J. v. VENTURA 3,401,422

HINGE 2 sheetsesheet 1 FIG.2

INVENTOR JOSEPH M VENTURA e cegfiilmgmmam NWORNEYS Sept. 17, 1968 J. v. VENTURA HINGE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept 15, 1965 INVENTOR JOSEPH V. VENTURA ATORNEYS United States Patent 3,401,422 HINGE Joseph V. Ventura, 800 Main St., Malden, Mass. 02148 Filed Sept. 15, 1965, Ser. No. 487,526 Claims. (Cl. 16-54) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A door hinge having a lower barrel with a leaf secured to it for attachment to a door frame with the barrel housing a cam. A pin rotatable in the barrel carries a follower associated with the cam, and a second barrel is removably mounted on the pin and carries a leaf which may be secured to the door.

This invention relates to hinges for doors, gates and other closures and more particularly comprises a new and improved hinge which includes as a part thereof a mechanism for biasing the door, gate or other closure to either an open or a closed position. Hereinafter doors, gates and other closures will collectively be called doors.

A variety of hinges are available which include some means that urges the hinge to either one of two extreme positions so as to bias the door hung on it to either a closed or an open position. The present invention is an improvement upon those devices which are now available.

One important object of this invention is to provide a combination hinge and door closure which is relatively inexpensive as compared to the heavy-duty hydraulic door closures now available.

Another important object of this invention is to provide a combination hinge and door closure which does not require the use of a separate stop to hold the door in an open position.

Another important object of this invention is to incorporate in a hinge, means for raising and lowering the door on the hinge without removing the door from the hinge.

Still another object of this invention is to provide means for varying the force applied to the door by the door closure portion of the hinge without removing the door from the hinge or the hinge from the door frame.

To accomplish these and other objects, one embodiment of this invention includes among its features, a hinge having a barrel in which is located an annular cam. The cam face has two low positions displaced angularly from one another and separated by a high position. The low positions of the cam describe the extreme positions of the door. A pin is rotatably mounted in the barrel and carries a cam follower that rotates with it and which engages the cam face. Means are provided in the barrel for biasing the cam follower to either of the low positions on the cam depending upon on which side of the high position the follower lies. Means including a leaf are secured to the pin to enable the pin to be fastened to a door. A separate leaf is secured to the barrel enabling the barrel to be secured to the door frame.

In accordance with another embodiment of this invention, the cam face has a high and a low position which define the extreme positions of the door. The barrel may be filled with oil, and means may be included in the barrel to partition it into separate chambers communicating with one another through restricted passages. This arrangement confined to the hinge defines a dash pot to limit the speed of operation of the door.

These and other objects and features of this invention along with its incident advantages will be better understood and appreciated from the following detailed description of two embodiments thereof, selected for pur poses of illustration and shown in the accompanying drawing, in which:

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FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional elevation view of a hinge and closure constructed in accordance with this invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional elevation view similar to FIG. 1 but showing the hinge and closure in the open position;

FIGS. 3 and 4 are cross-sectional views taken along the section lines 33 and 4-4, respectively, in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the cam forming part of the hinge and closure;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional elevation view of another hinge and closure constructed in accordance with this invention; and

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the cam in the embodiment of FIG. 6. p

In FIG. 1 the hinge and closure assembly is shown to include a first hinge barrel 10, a second upper solid hinge barrel 12 and a pair of leafs 14 and 16, respectively connected to the first and second barrels. The major portion of the mechanism is contained within the lower first barrel 10.

The first barrel 10 is generally cylindrical in shape and is oriented with its axis disposed vertically. The lower end of the barrel 10 is closed by a Wall 18, and the upper end 20 of the barrel is open. A cam 22 is seated in the bottom of the barrel 10, and is oriented in the barrel by a pin 24 which extends downwardly from its lower surface and registers with a recess 26 in the wall 18. Thus, the cam 22 is placed in the barrel and is rotated until the pin 24 registers with the opening 26, and when the pin 24 drops in place in the opening, the cam is properly positioned.

The cam 22 is generally annular in shape having an axial opening 28 which receives the lower end of pin 30. The upper cam face 32 of cam 22 has a first low position 34 and a second low position 36 displaced approximately from one another, and the two positions are separated by a high position or rise 38 on each side. At the top of each rise 38 is a bump 39. j

The cam 22 cooperates with a cam follower 40 secured to and rotatable with the pin 30 by virtue of the set screw or pin 43. In the form shown, the cam follower 40 has a stem 42 which moves over the cam face 32. In FIG. 1 the stem 42 is shown to register with the second low position 36 of the cam face while in FIG. 2 the stem 42 is shown disposed in the first low position 34 of the cam face. It is to be understood that the cam follower may take the form of a horizontal pin through the hinge 30 or some other form capable of riding on the face 32.

The upper end 20 of the barrel 10 is internally threaded, and a collar 44 having a lower threaded portion 46 is threaded into the upper end 20 to form a closure for the barrel 10; The upper end of the collar is shown to extend above the upper end 20 of the barrel, and the upper portion is shown to be hexagonal in shape so that a wrench may be applied to the collar to loosen and tighten it. Beneath the collar 44 in the barrel 10 is a compression spring 48 that forces the cam follower 40 downwardly on the cam face 32. It will be apparent that the downward action of the spring 48 will urge the follower 40 and more particularly its stem 42 to ride down from the high point 38 of the face so that the bottom of the stem 42 rests upon either of the low positions 34 or 36. To retard the action of the spring 48 the slope of the face from the high 38 is rather shallow at the center, so that the door will not close too quickly. Further, when the door is open with the cam follower in the low position 34, it is necessary for the cam follower to ride up out of the low 34 before the spring will assist in moving the follower to the other low 36.

An O ring 52 forms a seal between the collar 44 and the inner wall of the barrel 10, and a second O-ring 54 forms a seal about the pin 30 which extends through the opening 56 in the collar. The seals formed by the O-rings allow the barrel to be filled with a lubricant so as to enable the stem 42 to move with minimum friction over the surface of the cam. It also reduces friction between the other moving parts so that the door supported by the hinge may open and shut with minimum force.

As is evident from the foregoing description, the pin 30 is mounted for rotation in the barrel 10. The lower end 58 f the pin extends into the opening 28 in the cam 22, which opening acts as a guide to maintain the pin 30 in axial alignment with the barrel. The upper portion 60 of the pin 30 extends upwardly beyond the collar 44, and a groove 62, V-shaped in cross-section, is provided in the surface of the pin and extends axially thereof. The upper portion of the pin is in the upper solid barrel 12. The relatively small hole in the upper barrel maintains the pin and barrel 12 in constant axial align ment.

The barrel 12 is connected to the pin 30 by set screw 64 threaded into the cylindrical barrel wall 66, so that the barrel and pin rotate with one another. It will be noted in FIGS. 1, 2 and 4 that the inner end 68 of the set screw 64 tapers to a point to mate with the V-shaped slot 62 in the pin. The V-shaped configuration of the slot .and the pointed end of the set screw serve to align the barrel 12 properly with respect to the pin when the two are assembled. The set screw 64 can conveniently be turned when the door is closed, i.e., when the hinge is in the position of FIG. 1.

Another screw 70 is mounted in the upper end 72 of the second barrel 12, and the lower end of the screw 70 engages the upper end of the pin and supports the barrel 12 on it Thus, the barrel 12 may be raised or lowered with respect to the pin 30 by tightening or loosening the screw 70 in the wall 72. If desired, a cap (not shown) may be mounted on the top of the solid barrel 12 to cover the adjusting screw 70.

From the foregoing description it will be evident that several adjustments are provided in the hinge shown. First, by screwing the collar 44 into or out of the upper end 20 of the first barrel 10 the compressive load applied to the spring 48 may be varied, so as to vary the compressive load exerted by the spring on the cam follower 40. When the collar 44 is screwed further into the barrel 10, the spring 48 is compressed, and accordingly exerts a greater force upon the cam 40 urging it into a position wherein its stem 42 is aligned with and engages either of the low positions 34 and 36 of the cam face 32. On the other hand, when the collar 44 is loosened in the barrel 10, the load imposed by the spring 48 is reduced. As yet another adjustment, the upper barrel 12 may be raised or lowered on the pin 30 by loosening and tightening the screw 70. The advantages of such an arrangement will be made clear in connection with the description of I (the operation of the device which follows In use, the hinge is mounted by screwing the leaf 14 to the door frame by screws passing through the holes 74 provided in the leaf. The leaf 16 connected to the barrel 12 is screwed to the door through holes 76. The spring 48 serves to bias the cam follower 40 to an angular position wherein the door is in either its closed or open position. When the door is moved against the bias of the spring, the pin 30 rotates, and the follower 40 moves up to the high position 38. If the person releases the door in that position (opened approximately the door will move either fully open or fully closed, depending on what Side of the high point or bump 39 the follower is on. As the pin 42 moves from the closed portion, it raises somewhat on surface 32 and pin 30 also moves upwardly. Consequently the door which is attached to the barrel 12 also moves upwardly a distance equal to the dilference in elevations between the high and low cam positions. Elevation of the door in this manner has advantages. For example, the raised door .4, will pass over carpeting on the floor adjacent the threshold of the door as well as over any irregularities in the floor. The bumps 39 prevent the door from being unintentionally thrown fully open without a push adequate to make the follower override them.

In the embodiments of FIGS. 6 and 7 the lower hollow barrel is similar to the barrel 10 in the first embodiment and provides a housing for the cylindrical cam 102. The cam 102 as shown in FIG. 7 is provided with a pair of cam tracks 104 disposed opposite one another with the portion of each displaced 180 apart being equal in height to one another. The cam track 104 has a low position 106 and a high position 108 separated by an inclined plane 110 which connects the two.

The cylindrical cam 102 is secured against rotation by a downwardly extending pin 112 which registers in a corresponding opening 114 provided in the bottom wall of the lower barrel 100. The cylindrical cam serves as a housing for a piston-type member 116 that carries a pair of radially extending pins 118 opposite one another. The pins serve as cam followers and ride in the cam tracks 114. Thus, rotation of the member 116 within the cam 102 causes it to move up or down, depending upon the direction of rotation, because of the inclination of the cam tracks.

The members 116 carries a hinge pin 120 which corresponds to the pin 30 in the first embodiment. The pin 120 extends upwardly from the member 116 through collar 122 screwed into the top end of the lower barrel 100. A spring 124 is secured at its lower end to the collar 122 and acts in torsion to urge the member 116 to rotate in a direction so that its cam followers 118 sit in the low positions 106 of the cam tracks 104.

The pin 120 has a bore 126 extending through its center from top to bottom, and a radial port 128 extends from the bore 126 through the side of the hinge pin slightly above the top of the piston member 116. A needle-type adjustable valve 130 is formed at the port 128 by a threaded stem 132 which extends from the top of the hinge pin 120 downwardly to the vicinity of the port. The top of the stem 132 is provided with an Allen wrench socket or some similar device which enables it to be rotated so that it may be screwed into and out of the bore so as to vary the effective size of the port 128. It will be appreciated that the lower portion 134 of the bore 126 defines a passage through the member 116 which places the lower chamber 136 in the barrel 100 and the upper chamber 138 in communication with one another.

A second passage 140* extends through the member 116 and communicates with the two chambers 136 and 138. A check valve 142 is provided in the passage 140 so as to permit the flow through the passage 140 from chamber 138 to chamber 136. Flow in the opposite direction is prohibited through that passage by the valve.

Upper barrel 144 is secured to the upper portion of the hinge pin 120 in a manner similar to the upper barrel of the first embodiment. It will be noted, for example, that a set screw 146 cooperates with a slot provided in the upper portion of the pin 120 to prevent the upper barrel from rotating with respect to the pin. Further, the set screw 148 is provided in the top of the barrel to govern the height of the barrel 144 on the hinge pin 120. The set screw 148 preferably is provided with a central bore so as to allow access to the head of the stem 132.

As in the previous embodiment, the lower barrel (including chambers 136 and 138) is filled with a lubricating fluid such as oil. In this embodiment, however, the oil serves as a dash-pot in cooperation with the passages .134 and 140 extending through the member 116. In the position shown in FIG. 6, the door is closed and the cam followers 118 are disposed in the low positions 106 of the tracks 104. As the door is opened, the upper barrel 144 rotates causing the hinge pin 120 to .rotate with it. As the hinge pin rotates, the cam followers 118 ride up the inclined surfaces 110 until the door reaches its fully open position wherein the cam followers 118 are disposed in the high position 108. This opening action of the door is resisted somewhat by the coil spring 124 which acts in torsion to resist rotation of the member 116 in a counter clockwise direction as the hinge is viewed from the top. This action is also somewhat impeded by the oil which fills the chambers 136 and 138. In order for the member 116 to rise in the cam 102, some of the oil must flow from the chamber 138 to the chamber 136 through the passage 140. The check valve 142 will open under the influence of the pressure of the fluid to allow flow to occur. When the door is open the seats 108 will serve to capture the cam followers 118 and retain the door in the open position against the bias of the spring 124. To close the door the operator need only push the door sufficiently to remove the followers 118 from the seats 108. When this is accomplished, the spring 124 serves to urge the member 116 to rotate in a clockwise direction as viewed from the top causing the followers to ride the incline planes 104 to the low positions 106 of the tracks 104. This action is resisted by the oil in the chamber 136 that must flow upwardly through the passage 134 and out the port 128 into the chamber 138. This resistance is controlled by the setting of the stern 132. If the stem is in a relatively high position to expose the entire port 128, the oil will flow rather readily and will not greatly resist rotation. However, if the stem is screwed downwardly to obstruct a major portion of the port 128, the oil will have a very marked damping effect and will cause the door to close very slowly in spite of the strength of the spring 124. 'It is to be understood that the door will automatically close when opened, unless the door is fully opened so as to cause the cam followers 118 to reach the seats 108.

The tension of the spring 124 may be altered by turning the collar 122. If the collar is turned in a clockwise direction, and effectively tightens the turns of the spring 124, the spring will exert a greater closing force on the door, but if the spring is somewhat relaxed by turning the collar counter clockwise, the force will be lessened.

It will be apparent that the embodiment of FIGS. 6 and 7 has many of the advantages of the embodiment of FIGS. 15 and in addition includes the hydraulic dashpot to control or dampen the self closing action of the spring 124. The means for adjusting the various components are provided in both embodiments to achieve the desired results.

From the foregoing description, those skilled in the art will appreciate that numerous modifications may be made of this invention without departing from its spirit. For example, while the spring 48 is shown to act in compression in FIG. 1, it will be evident that the spring could act in torsion if its ends are connected to the collar 44 and cam follower 40 in the manner of the second embodiment. Other modifications are also possible. For example, while the collar 44 is shown to have a hexagonal head to allow a wrench to be applied to it, the hexagonal head may be replaced by a socket or other expedient to receive a wrench to enable it to be turned. In this connection it is apparent in FIG. 1 that the adjustment cannot be made by turning the collar 44 unless the door is open to expose the upper portion of the collar. In FIG. 2 it will be noted that the upper portion is exposed between the two barrels 10 and 12. When the door is closed, the ends of the barrels substantially abut one another and enclose the upper portion of the collar.

Because numerous modifications may be made of this invention without departing from its spirit, it is not intended to limit the scope of this inventon to the two embodiments illustrated and described. Rather, it is intended that the scope of this invention be determined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

What is claimed is:

1. A door hinge comprising a first cylindrical barrel closed at its bottom and oriented with its axis vertical,

a cam disposed in the bottom of the barrel with its cam face facing upwardly,.said face being annular and having a pair of low positions connected by an inclined plane,

a pin coaxially mounted in the barrel and carrying a cam follower at its lower end in said barrel, said follower engaging the cam face,

a collar secured to the top of and closing the barrel, said collar being secured to and being rotatable with respect to the pin,

a spring disposed within the barrel bearing against the collar and follower and acting in compression to urge the follower to *rotate and move down the inclined plane to either of the low positions on the face of the cam,

a second cylindrical barrel coaxial with the first barrel and secured to the pin for rotation therewith,

a screw secured to the second barrel and engaging the pin for varying the height of the second barrel on said pin,

a leaf secured to each barrel for securing the second barrel to a door and the first barrel to a door frame,

and means for raising and lowering the collar in the first barrel for varying the compressive load imposed on the spring.

2. A door hinge as defined in claim 1 further characterized by a lubricant filling the first barrel.

3. A door hinge as defined in claim 1 further characterized by the second barrel being secured to the pin by a V-sh'aped groove extending axially in the side of the pin,

and a set screw secured to and extending radially from the second barrel and having a wedge-shaped end disposed in the groove.

4. A door hinge as defined in claim 1 further characterized by said collar being threaded and screwed into the top of the barrel,

and wrench engaging means provided in the collar and extending above the top of the barrel enabling the collar to be screwed into and out of the top of the first barrel when the sec-0nd barrel is raised off the top of the first barrel.

5. A door hinge comprising a barrel open at one end,

a cam disposed in the end of the barrel away from said open end and having a cam face with a low position and a second position displaced angularly from the low position with an inclined plane between the positions,

a pin having a portion within the barrel and carrying a cam follower which engages the face of the cam, said cam follower and pin being rotatable together within the barrel,

means biasing the pin and follower to an angular position wherein the follower lies against the low position of the cam face,

a leaf secured to the barrel, for attachment to a door frame,

a second upper barrel and a second leaf releasably secured to it for rotation with the pin, said second leaf being adapted to be secured to and support a door,

and means enabling the releasably secured second barrel and second leaf to be lifted off the pin with the door without removing the pin from the first barrel, further characterized by means for raising and lower ing the second barrel on the pin.

6. A door hinge as defined in claim 5 further characterized by means for raising and lowering the second 7 barrel on the pin.

7. A door hinge as defined in claim 5 further characterized by means closing the first named barrel,

and a lubricant filling the first named barrel.

8. A door hinge as defined in claim 5 further characterized by a partition dividing the first named barrel into two chambers and movable up and down in said barrel with the pin as the follower moves on the cam face.

a liquid filling the chambers,

and passage means through the partition limiting the flow of the liquid from one chamber to the other to retard the rotation of the pin.

9. A door hinge as defined in claim 8 further characterized by the second position on the cam face being a high position,

8 v t 10. A door hinge as defined in claim 8 further characterized by means disposed in the passage for regulating the rate of flow of the liquid through the passage means.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 490,032 l/1893 Montgomery 16186 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,049,022. 8/ 1953 France.

385,664 3/1965 Switzerland.

BOBBY R. GAY, Primary Examiner.

and means retaining the follower in the high position 15 D. L, TROUTMAN, Assistant Examiner.

against the biasing means. 

